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Methods and devices for radio frequency (RF) mitigation proximate the ear
US10362381B2
United States
- Inventor
Steven Wayne Goldstein Gideon Duvall - Current Assignee
- St Portfolio Holdings LLC
- St Tiptech LLC
- DM Staton Family LP
Worldwide applications
Application US13/486,514 events
2012-06-01
2012-06-01
2019-01-31
2019-07-23
Application granted
2019-07-23
Status
Active
2032-06-01
Anticipated expiration
Description
translated from
This application is related to and claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/492,193 entitled “METHODS AND DEVICES FOR RADIO FREQUENCY (RF) MITIGATION PROXIMATE THE EAR” filed on Jun. 1, 2011, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention relates to earpieces and, more particularly, to earpieces and methods of forming earpieces for radio frequency (RF) mitigation proximate the ear.
During data transmission, communication devices (such as mobile phones) may emit radio frequency (RF) waves, a form of electromagnetic radiation. There are generally two types of electromagnetic radiation, ionizing and non-ionizing radiation. It is known that large doses of ionizing radiation (for example, X-rays, ultraviolet (UV) rays, and gamma rays) may cause cancer. There is concern that non-ionizing radiation (for example, visible light, microwaves and RF waves) may also cause cancer. Recent studies have indicated that there may be a link between the non-ionizing radiation (such as the radiation emitted from mobile phones) and cancer.
The present invention relates to an earpiece configured to be inserted in an ear canal. The earpiece includes an insertion element and a sealing section disposed on the insertion element and configured to conform to the ear canal. The sealing section is configured to substantially mitigate RF transmission and to substantially isolate the ear canal from an ambient environment.
The present invention also relates to an earpiece configured to be inserted in an ear canal of an ear. The earpiece includes a stent, a housing coupled to the stent and a sealing section disposed on the stent and configured to conform to the ear canal. The sealing section is configured to substantially mitigate RF transmission from a communication device proximate the ear and to substantially isolate the ear canal from an ambient environment.
The present invention also relates to methods of forming an earpiece. The method includes forming an insertion element, forming a sealing section to substantially mitigate RF transmission and attaching the sealing section to the insertion element. The sealing section is configured to conform to an ear canal and to substantially isolate the ear canal from an ambient environment.
The invention may be understood from the following detailed description when read in connection with the accompanying drawing. It is emphasized, according to common practice, that various features of the drawing may not be drawn to scale. On the contrary, the dimensions of the various features may be arbitrarily expanded or reduced for clarity. Moreover, in the drawing, common numerical references are used to represent like features. Included in the drawing are the following figures:
Aspects of the present invention relate to earpieces and methods of forming earpieces for RF mitigation proximate the ear. An exemplary earpiece may include an insertion element and a sealing section disposed on the insertion element. The sealing section is configured to be inserted in an ear canal and may be configured to conform to the ear canal. According to an exemplary embodiment, the sealing section may be configured to substantially absorb RF radiation. According to another embodiment, the insertion element may also be configured to substantially absorb RF radiation. Accordingly, the earpiece may absorb RF emission and provide sound isolation from an ambient environment. According to an exemplary embodiment, the sealing section may include an expandable element filled with a medium and particles configured to absorb the RF emission. According to another exemplary embodiment, the sealing section may include a sealing material and particles configured to absorb the RF emission.
According to an exemplary embodiment, an exemplary earpiece may include at least one transducer. A transducer may be configured to receive a sound signal from a communication device coupled to the earpiece and to transmit the sound signal to the ear canal. The communication device may emit RF radiation. Accordingly, exemplary earpieces of the present invention may be coupled to one or more communication devices and may provide acoustic signals to the ear canal, while providing RF mitigation to the ear canal from RF radiation emitted by the communication device.
Referring to FIG. 1 , a side-view diagram of an exemplary earpiece 100 is shown. Earpiece 100 is shown relative to ear 106 of user 118. FIG. 1 also illustrates a general physiology of ear 106. An external portion of ear 106 includes pinna 108. An internal portion of ear 106 includes ear canal 110 and tympanic membrane 112 (i.e., an eardrum).
Pinna 108 is a cartilaginous region of ear 106 that focuses acoustic information from ambient environment 116 to ear canal 110. In general, sound enters ear canal 110 and is subsequently received by tympanic membrane 112. Acoustic information resident in ear canal 110 vibrates tympanic membrane 112. The vibration is converted to a signal (corresponding to the acoustic information) that is provided to an auditory nerve (not shown).
As described further below, sealing section 104 may be configured to substantially absorb RF radiation 206 (FIG. 2 ) (i.e., RF transmission) emitted from communication device 202 (FIG. 2 ). Insertion element 102 may also be configured to substantially absorb RF emission.
Referring next to FIG. 2 , a cross-section diagram of earpiece 100 in ear 106 is shown. FIG. 2 illustrates one or more components which may be included in earpiece 100. In general, earpiece 100 may be configured to be inserted into ear canal 110, and to form an acoustic seal (via sealing section 104) with walls 208 of ear canal 110 at a location 210 between entrance 212 to ear canal 110 and tympanic membrane 112.
According to an exemplary embodiment, earpiece 100 may be configured to communicate with communication device 202. According to another embodiment, earpiece 100 may be configured as a sound isolation device (described further below) and thus, may not be configured to communicate with communication device 202.
As shown in FIG. 2 , insertion element 102 may include one or more components, such as electro-acoustical components, electrical components and/or pumping mechanism 228 for sealing section 104. Several example embodiments of components that may be included in insertion element 102 are discussed below.
According to one embodiment, earpiece 100 may include insertion element 102 and sealing section 104, without any electro-acoustic elements. In this embodiment, earpiece 100 may be configured simply as a sound isolation device, where sealing section 104 and/or insertion element 102 are configured to substantially mitigate RF radiation 206 from communication device 202. In this manner, RF radiation 206 may be substantially mitigated and/or prevented from reaching closed cavity 114 of ear canal 110. If sealing section 104 is configured to be expanded (such as described with respect to FIG. 3A ), housing 232 may include pumping mechanism 228 to provide medium 304 (FIG. 3A ) to sealing section 104 via stent 230.
According to another embodiment, earpiece 100 may include one or more electro-acoustical components (i.e., transducers). For example, stent 230 may include ear canal receiver (ECR) 214 (i.e., a loudspeaker). ECR 214 may be configured to provide acoustic content to sealed volume 114. ECR 214 may receive the acoustic content from communication device 202 or any other device capable of providing acoustic content (such as a portable audio player).
As a result of the seal provided by sealing section 104, ECR 214 may be able to generate a full range bass response time when reproducing sounds for user 118 (FIG. 1 ). The seal (by sealing section 104) may also significantly reduce a sound pressure level at tympanic membrane 112 resulting from the sound field at entrance 212 to ear canal 110 (to provide sound isolation).
According to another exemplary embodiment, stent 230 may include ear canal microphone (ECM) 216 located adjacent to ECR 214, which may also be acoustically coupled to sealed cavity 114. ECM 216 may measure a sound pressure level in sealed cavity 114. For example, the sound pressure level in sealed cavity 114 may be measured as a part of testing a hearing acuity of user 118 (FIG. 1 ). The sound pressure level in sealed cavity 114 may also be used to confirm an integrity of the acoustic seal of sealing section 104, as well as the working conditions of ECM 216 and ECR 214.
According to another exemplary embodiment, housing 232 may include ambient sound microphone (ASM 218). ASM 218 may monitor a sound pressure at entrance 212 to (occluded) ear canal 110. The sound pressure monitored by ASM 218 may be used, for example, to adjust the sound isolation provided by sealing section 104. As another example, the sound pressure monitored by ASM 218 may be used to adjust a volume of the audio content provided by ECR 214 to closed cavity 114.
All transducers (such as ECR 214, ECM 216 and ASM 218) may respectively receive or transmit audio signals to control circuit 220 in housing 232. Control circuit 220 may undertake at least a portion of the audio signal processing described above. Control circuit 220 may include, for example, a logic circuit, a digital signal processor or a microprocessor. Although not shown, earpiece 100 may also include a memory to store one or more signals from ECR 214, ECM 216 and ASM 218. As another example, earpiece 100 may be coupled to a memory that is remote from earpiece 100. The memory may include, for example, a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk, an optical disk, flash memory or a hard drive. Although ECR 214 and ECM 216 are shown in FIG. 2 as being in stent 230, it is understood that one or more of ECR 214 and ECM 216 may be formed in housing 232 and coupled to closed cavity 114 via acoustic channels formed in stent 230.
According to another exemplary embodiment, housing 232 may include user interface 226. Housing 232 may also include pumping mechanism 228 for controlling expansion of sealing section 104. User interface 226 may be configured to control one or more of ECR 214, ECM 216, ASM 218, control circuit 220, communication circuit 222 and pumping mechanism 228. ECR 214, ECM 216, ASM 218, control circuit 220, communication circuit 222, user interface 226 and pumping mechanism 228 may be coupled together via a data and control bus (not shown). It is understood that earpiece 100 may include additional components (not shown) such as a battery.
Referring next to FIGS. 3A and 3B , exemplary sealing sections 104, 104′ are shown. In particular, FIG. 3A is a cross-section diagram of sealing section 104 including expandable element 302 (such as a balloon) filled with medium 304; and FIG. 3B is a cross-section diagram of sealing section 104′ in ear canal 110 including sealing material 310. Each of sealing section 104 and sealing section 104′ may include particles 306 to substantially absorb RF radiation 206 (FIG. 2 ) (for example, between about 3 kHz to about 300 GHz).
Referring to FIG. 3A , sealing section 104 may include expandable element 302 filled with medium 304 mixed with particles 306 (for example, suspended in solution). Sealing section 104 is configured to substantially attenuate sound from ambient environment 116 (FIG. 1 ). Sealing section 104 is also configured to substantially absorb RF radiation 206 (FIG. 2 ) via particles 306. In general, particles 306 may be configured to interfere with, absorb and/or reflect RF radiation 206 (FIG. 2 ).
As shown in FIG. 3B , sealing section 104′ is similar to sealing section 104 (FIG. 3A ), except that sealing section 104′ includes sealing material 310 having embedded particles 306 for substantially mitigating RF radiation 206 (FIG. 2 ). Thus, sealing section 104′ may also be configured to seal ear canal 110 from ambient sound 116 (FIG. 1 ).
In general, earpiece 100 (FIG. 1 ) may provide RF shielding by using any suitable electrically conductive material. Because metals are typically not flexible and may be difficult form into a suitable earpiece shape (such as by injection molding), in an exemplary embodiment, conductive particles/fibers may be used as fillers to make polymers conductive (and thus to provide effective RF shielding materials).
According to another exemplary embodiment, at least one of insertion element 102 or sealing section 104 may be formed from a flexible material that is inherently conductive, without using fillers (such as conductive particles and/or fibers). For example, a metal earpiece body may be formed. An example of this is provided with respect to the medium 304 (FIG. 3A ) used to fill expandable element 302. If a fluid is conductive, it may be capable of provide RF shielding without fillers such as particles and/or fibers. However, based on the desired shielding characteristics (i.e., a frequency range of RF radiation and a desired reflectivity), fillers may be added to improve conductivity and thus, RF shielding. For example, the higher the conductivity and the thicker the material, the greater the shielding capability by the material, and the greater the shielding at lower frequencies. As is the case with solids, shielding ability may be afforded to nonconductive fluids by using conductive fillers.
Referring back to FIG. 2 , although earpiece 100 is described above as being configured to mitigate RF radiation 206 from communication device 202, earpiece 100 may also be configured to mitigate RF radiation produced by earpiece 100 itself. For example, insertion element 102 and/or sealing section 104 may mitigate RF radiation emitted by communication circuit 222. In an exemplary embodiment, earpiece 100 may be configured to absorb between about 70% and about 100% of generated and/or received RF radiation within a frequency range of communication device 202 and internally generated radiation typically in a range between about 3 kHz and 300 GHz.
Referring next to FIG. 4 , a flowchart diagram of an exemplary method for forming an earpiece capable of RF mitigation is shown. The steps illustrated in FIG. 4 represent an example embodiment of the present invention. It is understand that certain steps may be performed in an order different from what is shown. It is also understood that certain steps may be eliminated.
At step 402, stent 230 (FIG. 2 ) is formed, for example, via injection molding. According to an exemplary embodiment, stent 230 (FIG. 2 ) may be formed with a material capable of RF mitigation. For example, stent 230 (FIG. 2 ) may be formed of an RF damping material such as polyurethane filled with RF shielding material such as iron, nickel and/or graphite particles. As another example, stent 230 (FIG. 2 ) may be formed of a material with embedded ferromagnetic particles, ferrimagnetic or electrically conductive particles for RF mitigation.
At optional step 404, one or more components may be inserted in stent 230 (FIG. 2 ). For example, as shown in FIG. 2 , one or more electro-acoustic components (such as ECR 214 and/or ECM 216) may be formed in stent 230.
At step 406, housing 232 (FIG. 2 ) may be formed, for example, via injection molding. According to an exemplary embodiment, housing 232 (FIG. 2 ) may be formed with a material capable of RF mitigation. For example, housing 232 (FIG. 2 ) may be formed of an RF damping material such as polyurethane filled with RF shielding material such as iron, nickel, and/or graphite particles. As another example, housing 232 (FIG. 2 ) may be formed of a material with embedded ferromagnetic particles, ferrimagnetic or electrically conductive particles for RF mitigation.
At optional step 408, one or more components may be inserted in housing 232 (FIG. 2 ). For example, as shown in FIG. 2 , electro-acoustic components (such as ASM 218), electrical components (such as control circuit 220, communication circuit 222 and/or user interface 226) and/or other components (such as pumping mechanism 228) may be formed in housing 232. At step 410, housing 232 (FIG. 2 ) is coupled to stent 230.
At step 412, sealing section 104 (FIG. 1 ) is formed such that it includes RF mitigation properties. For example, sealing section 104 may include medium 304 (FIG. 3A ) and particles 306 for RF mitigation or may include sealing material 310 (FIG. 3B ) with embedded particles 306 for RF mitigation. Sealing material 310 (FIG. 3B ) may also be formed of RF damping material such as polyurethane filled with RF shielding materials such as iron, nickel and/or graphite particles.
At step 414, sealing section 104 (FIG. 2 ) is attached to stent 230. Sealing section 104 (FIG. 2 ) may be attached to stent 230 via any suitable attachment method, such as, but not limited to, bonding, adherence with an adhesive, thermal bonding, molding and ultrasonic bonding.
Although the invention is illustrated and described herein with reference to specific embodiments, the invention is not intended to be limited to the details shown. Rather, various modifications may be made in the details within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims and without departing from the invention.
Claims (32)
Hide Dependent
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Claims (32)
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1. An earpiece configured to be inserted in an ear canal comprising:
an insertion element;
a pump included within a housing of the insertion element; and
a sealing section disposed on the insertion element and configured to conform to the ear canal, wherein the pump included within the housing is configured to provide a mixture to an expandable element of the sealing section disposed on a stent of the earpiece so as to expand the expandable element and cause the sealing section to conform to the ear canal, wherein the sealing section is configured to substantially mitigate radio frequency (RF) transmission and to substantially isolate the ear canal from an ambient environment.
2. The earpiece according to claim 1 , wherein the sealing section includes a plurality of particles configured to at least one of interfere with the RF transmission, absorb the RF transmission or reflect the RF transmission.
3. The earpiece according to claim 2 , wherein the particles include at least one of ferromagnetic particles, ferrimagnetic particles or electrically conductive particles.
4. The earpiece according to claim 1 , wherein the sealing section includes:
the mixture, wherein the mixture comprises a medium and a plurality of particles, the particles configured to substantially mitigate the RF transmission.
5. The earpiece according to claim 1 , wherein the expandable element is formed from a material including at least one of silicone, rubber, a polyurethane elastomer or an RF absorbing elastomer.
6. The earpiece according to claim 4 , wherein the medium includes at least one of a liquid or a gel.
7. The earpiece according to claim 6 , wherein the liquid includes at least one of an electrically conductive fluid or a colloidal liquid including a carrier fluid.
8. The earpiece according to claim 1 , wherein the sealing section includes:
a sealing material configured to conform to the ear canal; and
a plurality of particles embedded in the sealing material, the particles configured to substantially mitigate the RF transmission.
9. The earpiece according to claim 8 , wherein the sealing material is formed from an RF damping material configured to absorb the RF transmission.
10. The earpiece according to claim 8 , wherein the sealing material is formed from a material including at least one of polyurethane, foam or rubber.
11. The earpiece according to claim 1 , wherein at least a portion of the insertion element is configured to substantially mitigate the RF transmission.
12. The earpiece according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the sealing section or the insertion element is formed from an electrically conductive material configured to at least one of interfere with the RF transmission, absorb the RF transmission or reflect the RF transmission.
13. An earpiece configured to be inserted in an ear canal of an ear comprising:
a stent;
a housing coupled to the stent;
a pump included within the housing; and
a sealing section disposed on the stent and configured to conform to the ear canal, wherein the pump included within the housing is configured to provide a mixture to an expandable element of the sealing section disposed on the stent so as to expand the expandable element and cause the sealing section to conform to the ear canal, wherein the sealing section is configured to substantially isolate the ear canal from an ambient environment and to substantially mitigate radio frequency (RF) transmission from at least one of the earpiece or a communication device proximate the ear.
14. The earpiece according to claim 13 , wherein at least one of the stent or the housing is configured to substantially mitigate the RF transmission.
15. The earpiece according to claim 13 , wherein the sealing section includes:
the mixture, wherein the mixture comprises a medium and a plurality of particles, the particles configured to substantially mitigate the RF transmission.
16. The earpiece according to claim 13 , wherein the pump is configured to provide the mixture to the expandable element of the sealing section via the stent.
17. The earpiece according to claim 13 , wherein the sealing section includes:
a sealing material configured to conform to the ear canal; and
a plurality of particles embedded in the sealing material, the particles configured to substantially mitigate the RF transmission.
18. The earpiece according to claim 17 , wherein the sealing material is formed from an RF damping material configured to absorb the RF transmission.
19. The earpiece according to claim 13 , wherein the housing includes a communication circuit configured to communicate with the communication device.
20. The earpiece according to claim 19 , wherein the communication circuit is configured to communicate via a wired connection or a wireless connection.
21. The earpiece according to claim 13 , wherein the housing or the stent includes a transducer to transmit sound to the ear canal.
22. The earpiece according to claim 13 , wherein the housing or the stent includes a microphone configured to received sound from the ear canal.
23. The earpiece according to claim 13 , wherein the housing includes a microphone configured to receive ambient sound from the ambient environment.
24. A method of forming an earpiece comprising:
forming an insertion element;
forming a sealing section to substantially mitigate radio frequency (RF) transmission;
forming a pump within a housing of the insertion element; and
attaching the sealing section to the insertion element, wherein the pump within the housing of the insertion element is configured to provide a mixture to an expandable element of the sealing section disposed on a stent of the earpiece so as to expand the expandable element and cause the sealing section to confirm to an ear canal, wherein the sealing section is configured to substantially isolate the ear canal from an ambient environment based on expansion of the expandable element.
25. The method according to claim 24 , wherein the forming of the sealing section includes forming the sealing section with a plurality of particles to at least one of interfere with the RF transmission, absorb the RF transmission or reflect the RF transmission.
26. The method according to claim 24 , wherein the forming of the insertion element includes forming at least a portion of the insertion element to substantially mitigate the RF transmission.
27. The method according to claim 24 , wherein the forming of the sealing section includes:
attaching the expandable element to the insertion element; and
forming the mixture, wherein the mixture comprises a medium and a plurality of particles, the particles configured to substantially mitigate the RF transmission, wherein the expandable element is configured to receive the mixture and to expand, responsive to the mixture, to conform to the ear canal.
28. The method according to claim 24 , wherein the forming of the sealing section includes:
embedding a plurality of particles in a sealing material, the particles configured to substantially mitigate the RF transmission, wherein the sealing material is configured to conform to the ear canal.
29. The method according to claim 28 , wherein the sealing material is formed from an RF damping material configured to absorb the RF transmission.
30. The method according to claim 24 , wherein the forming of the insertion element comprises including at least one transducer in the insertion element.
31. The method according to claim 24 , wherein the forming of the insertion element comprises including at least one of a transducer, a communication circuit, a processor, a user interface, or a combination thereof, in the insertion element.
32. The method according to claim 24 , wherein at least one of the sealing section or the insertion element is formed from an electrically conductive material configured to at least one of interfere with the RF transmission, absorb the RF transmission or reflect the RF transmission.